Last year I spent many agonizing months suffering through acute anxiety disorder and recurring panic attacks. It was a really, really bad time for me, and one part of my path to healing was communicating with people more and connecting with them on a deeper level.

So when November rolled around, I felt like I wanted to do something for the many people who I care about, and I decided to send out handmade holiday cards and gifts. There were a lot of people on my list, so I needed something that wouldn’t take me too long, also because I was still far from well and had limited energy. I created simple greeting cards to print and craft up quickly, leaving me time to write something heartfelt by hand.

Today I want to share with you my free printable holiday cards so that you can connect with the most important people in your life and show them how much you care about them! Let’s get started!

Materials:

• Paper cutter* (or just scissors, though it’ll take longer with less precise results)
• 1 page of red* and 1 page of green printer paper per two cards
• Christmas tree craft punch (I used this 2.5 cm/1″ tree punch*, purchased in Italy. You can get the same size and shape in a different brand here*, or browse other 1″ Christmas tree craft punches* to find the style you prefer.)
• Glue stick (clear-drying)
• Printer
• Free printable holiday cards file (My free printables, templates and patterns are available to all Cucicucicoo Newsletter subscribers. The Newsletter is sent out every two weeks and you can unsubscribe whenever you want. Sign up for the Newsletter here for access to dozens of free creative downloads! If you are already subscribed, check one of your old Newsletters or your welcome e-mail for the link and password.)

How to make free printable holiday cards:

1. Download the free printable holiday cards PDF file (see above for download info) and choose which pages you want to print. The first four pages are in English, while the fifth and sixth are in Italian. Print as many pages as you need on red printer paper. (Remember that each page makes two cards.)

2. Get the same number of sheets of green paper, then fold both red and green sheets in half lengthwise.

3. Cut each sheet of printed red paper in half, making two card outers.

4. Trim a bit off of the long open side of the folded green paper (left), then from the bottom, and then cut the remaining part in half (right).

5. Put a piece of green inside a piece of red to check that the red margins are even.

6. Center the paper punch under the writing at the bottom of the card and punch out one shape. Then punch out one on each side of the center one. Make sure that you don’t cut too close to the edge of the red paper so as not to go over into the margin.

Discard the little red Christmas trees, or use them in other crafts!

7. Apply glue on the inside fold and inside front of the red paper, going carefully around the punched shapes (top).

8. Center the folded green paper along the fold and press down to the left over the inside front. Then apply glue to the outside back of the green paper (bottom) and close the card, pressing down on the red back of the card.

Now you can see that your Christmas trees now show up green, and you have a pretty writing space inside the card!

Here’s another option, which is faster and has an interesting visual effect that I actually like more.

At step 7, add a thick layer of glue ONLY along the inside fold of the red paper. Sandwich the green paper inside, close the card, and press it well from the outside. When you open the card back up, you’ll see that the green paper pulls away slightly from the red outside. Choose whichever technique you prefer!

9. Not so fast! Press the cards inside or under a heavy book for at least half an hour so that the glue can dry with the paper pressed flat.

And that’s it! Now all that’s left is the best part: writing thoughtful messages to your favorite people that you will give these free printable holiday cards to!

If you have children, make some cute custom-decorated Christmas tree ornaments from old sweaters with them to give away, too! They are perfect for sending in cards because they are flat and light!

Right now I’m working on this year’s DIY holiday cards, using paper punches in a different way, so remember to check back in next year for that tutorial!

If you love using paper for the holidays, make sure you read my tutorial for super easy reclaimed gift tags, which is part of the Cucicucicoo Eco Gift Wrapping Guide!

Now, go get your supplies, and get started making this year’s Christmas cards!

But before you do that, make sure you click here to save this project on Pinterest!

*All starred links are affiliate links which help fund this blog. All opinions are my own.
Please read my affiliate link disclosure for more information.